Froma Harrop: Rather difficult to define poverty in a land of plenty

By froma harrop

Saturday

Nov 12, 2011 at 12:01 AM

The “poverty issue” opens a vast highway system of social and economic observations headed in every direction. Some say that poverty is a national disgrace. Some say it’s the poor people’s own fault. Some say the government must end it through bigger

The "poverty issue" opens a vast highway system of social andeconomic observations headed in every direction. Some say thatpoverty is a national disgrace. Some say it's the poor people's ownfault. Some say the government must end it through bigger subsidiesand more services for the poor - others by reducing that help andinstead expanding economic opportunity.

The most interesting battle rages over the very definition ofpoverty in this land of plenty. Conservatives often argue that theofficial poverty line has been set too high. Many who live below itare actually doing reasonably well. Liberals frequently answerthat, no, poverty is worse and more widespread than the governmentcount would suggest.

Conservatives are right about one thing: The federalgovernment's longtime metric for drawing the poverty line isprimitive and does exaggerate the hardship felt in this country.(It is being replaced by a more sophisticated model, alsocontroversial.) Amazingly, the old measurement doesn't count FoodStamps, tax credits and other government benefits in toting upincomes.

But while conservatives stand on solid ground in theircomplaints over how poverty gets determined, their broaderarguments can be fairly heartless. One of them requires rummagingthrough poor people's possessions for signs of high living. That isneither nice nor revealing.

A case in point is a recent Heritage Foundation report holdingthat most Americans people defined as poor really aren't. Theevidence: In 2005, the typical "poor" household had a car and airconditioning. It had one or more color TVs, cable or satelliteservice, and a DVD player. If there were children, it had a gamesystem, such as Xbox or PlayStation.

We all get the point, made by authors Robert Rector and RachelSheffield. But there's some missing information. Who bought theXbox? (A friend who pitied the child?) Where was it bought?(Third-hand at the Salvation Army store?) When was it bought? (Twoyears earlier, before the parents were laid off?)

A long time ago, I lost a job, and my income plummeted. HadRector and Sheffield opened my closet the day I collected my firstunemployment check, they would have spotted a swell leather jacketand real pearls. I was hardly poor, but suddenly, paying the renthad become a concern.

The authors' list of "amenities" found in most poor householdsalso irritates. It includes a refrigerator, stove and oven. Thiscountry is not Bangladesh or Albania, and so our definition ofpoverty need not compete with theirs. And whereas a car and airconditioning might be deemed non-essentials in San Francisco, thatwould be less the case in Phoenix. And Rector and Sheffield include"ceiling fans" among the amenities. Really.

As an example of how well our impoverished neighbors are doing,they offer this quote by scholar James Q. Wilson: "The poorestAmericans today live a better life than all but the richest personsa hundred years ago." That may be true on a material level, but sowhat? Thomas Jefferson (who died deep in debt, by the way) didn'thave running water in his treasure-filled, 24-room mansion,Monticello. Should running water be considered a frill today?

Meanwhile, some aspects of the old poverty definition understatethe adversity. It doesn't include money spent on taxes or healthcare, and it ignores regional differences in the cost of living. In2009, the median rent in the Bronx was $875 a month. In Amarillo,Texas, it was $647.

Here's an experiment for our friends at The Heritage Foundation:Shut off the air conditioning at your Washington, D.C. headquartersfor August. Then come back and tell us whether a/c is a luxury. Andno cheating with ceiling fans!

Froma Harrop is a member of The Journal's editorial board and asyndicated columnist.

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